Really good stuff!  My boyfriend and I came here for our Valentine's Day dinner.  We were told that the restaurant was booked from 6-8pm with reservations so we were forced to go in at 5:30pm.  A little early, but still manageable.  We got there and were promptly seated in the formal dining area.  On the other side of the restaurant,  I believe there was a bar for more casual seating.  I loved the decorations and feel of the place.  There were cabinets of different types of wines lining the perimeter of the seating area.  Only one thing though, the seating seems to be a bit too close to each other.  At times, I could fully hear the conversations of the people next to us.  We ordered the lobster bisque for our appetizers.  It was sooooo delicious!  The soup was creamy and rich, with just the right amount of the seafood lobster taste. We then ordered the  Linguine Meatballs and Chicken Marsala for our main entrees, which were both amazing!  We were in the restaurant probably from 5:30-7pm and oddly enough, there were tons of open tables (surprising since they told us there were no reservations available from 6-8pm).  Either way, we had a great time here and will definitely be coming back!
Review Source:I had dinner at Wine Guy Bistro last week with a friend.  I am giving  2 star rating for food, service and atmosphere.  I would give a much higher rating if you skipped dinner and ordered wine flights and some appetizers.
I hadn't seen my friend in a while and we were looking forward to catching up and the dining room is incredibly loud. Â It was hard to have a conversation with the din.
When we first sat down our server seemed overly eager to get us to place our order. Â We asked for some time to look over the menu and when we had questions she had a difficult time explaining some of the options. Â
We both ordered salads, I ordered the Cioppino and my friend ordered the chicken marsala tapas size. Â The salads had way too much dressing - there was a puddle at the bottom of my salad plate. Â The Cioppino for some reason has a bunch of risotto in the middle of it and was not hot - the seafood was cooked well and the broth was tasty. Â I had to ask 3 times for a spoon. Â My friend enjoyed her chicken but the server brought the full entree size - although she did "ask the manager and got approval to only charge for the tapas size". Once meals were delivered we didn't see our server again until we received our check.
The one redeeming thing about Wine Guy Bistro are their wine flights. Â I had the Italian and for $14.95 I received 4 generous pours of Italian reds - and all were quite nice. Â While I wouldn't go back for a meal, I would go back here for a wine flight and maybe an appetizer.
This restaurant is okay, but I won't be going back anytime soon. On the plus side, the food was very nice. The mozzarella salad was tasty, although a bit overdressed. My ciopinno seafood stew and my husband's veal were both well executed, but not remarkably so. The molten lava cake was generous, but overly sweet. Also on the plus side, the flights of wine are good fun. The wine store concept is original and works well. The overall decor is a pleasant balance of rustic and modern. However, the entire menu seemed overpriced considering the overall experiemce. If I am going to be charged fine dining prices ($120 for two with tax and tip), Â I expect fine dining service, which we did not receive. We arrived at 8:00 on a Saturday night. Not surpringly, there were no tables and no room at bar. The hostess asked us for our cell number so she could contact us when a table was ready and seemed alarmed when we told her we did not have one. She also informed us that they couldn't tell us how long we'd have to wait, only how many people were on the list. After waiting almost an hour, we were ushered to the worst table in the restaurant. Despite several other tables being open, we were seated half in the staff service area with a lovely view of the trash and the cutlery rolling station. We then watched people who had walked in 30-45 minutes after us get seated at better tables. Throughout the meal our waiter was fine, but not experienced in proper restaurant service. Also irksome was the total lack of soap in the bathroom (gross and unacceptable) and the fact that the staff started shutting down the place at 10:30 when people were still eating (sweeping, putting out candles, having staff meals and drinks in view of customers). Don't get me wrong, everyone was very polite and the food was good, but we left underwhelmed. This is probably a good place to go for some casual glasses of wine, but I wouldn't recommend it for an intimate dining experience.
Review Source:GROSS! The food is pathetic. I would like to know what everyone ordered if they thought it was great. Went here with the girls to enjoy a great dinner before Christmas. Not so - Tortellini? horrible. Mac & Cheese for $17.99 - horrible and sent back. Over priced $10 flatbread was o.k. We ordered bread plate for $5.99 and got 1/4 of a baguette. I thought "plate" would have been a assortment of some kind. Noticed nearby table did not eat their food either. If you are drunk, food might be acceptable.Too overpriced when great places like Panera, Chili's, Chipolte are next door. When your food is delivered, YOU WILL KNOW, it's not fresh made and worth cost. Will never go back. This place reminded me of a potential Kitchen Nightmare candidate.
Review Source:I LOVE this place; the atmosphere, the selection and the food! The wine staff is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. (especially for someone who seriously has no knowledge about wine no matter how many glasses I've indulged in) They helped me discover some of my now favorite wines. I will continue to go back!!
Review Source:One of my favorite restaurants in Cincinnati. I have never had a bad experience or food here. The wine is very reasonable and there's a good selection. I recommend the spicy shrimp pasta or the meatballs. My wife loves the risotto. Can't compliment the service enough here...has the personal touch!
Review Source:My experience at this location was almost as great as my previous one at the location in Gahanna, OH. We were there for lunch on a Saturday so, unlike my previous evening visit to The Wine Guy, I tried more than an appetizer as far as food was concerned. My grilled vegetable ciabatta sandwich with butternut squash soup was fantastic. In addition, the service was excellent here, as was the case in Gahanna. The only negative to this visit was the extremely less than fresh oranges on one of our dining companion's entree salad. The management was quick to offer a replacement, though, once they were made aware of the problem. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this place to anyone.
Review Source:The food was pretty delicious and the wine tasty. I especially like how they deliver the flights to you in a wooden holder - especially since I'm a tad clumsy and having four breakable things in front of me is a bit nerve wracking.
The food options are definitely quality items and delicious enough that it makes me want to come back and eat more. However, the price is a bit more expensive than I normally would like to pay for that type of meal, so it definitely isn't a place I would visit regularly to eat for a meal. Definitely more of a happy hour spot to try the flights and get a few quick bites.
Additionally, I LOVE the ambiance of the place inside. It's charming, a bit rustic, yet completely refined. Just a wonderful overall feel to the hustle and bustle right outside the doors in Rookwood.
I've eaten here several times and have been generally pleased with the experience. Unfortunately, my last visit there was not the best. I attempted to use an expired $40 Groupon for the original purchase price paid of $20. The original purchase price never expires according to state law and per Groupon's terms & conditions.
Wine Guy refused to honor this and directed me to contact Groupon HQ for a refund of the amount. The manager came to our table and explained they were in the right to refuse honoring it according to their attorneys. Shady...
I'll probably not return here due to their business practices.
Caveat edax.
This place has all the potential in the world, combining a wine shop with an elegant bistro. Unfortunately, it tends to be style over substance.
The wine prices are supposedly at the state minimums, but I'm not sure I really believe that. I don't have any evidence to the contrary, it just seems like I see lower prices regularly. Their selection, however, is very nice for a strip mall shop. I've come across some hard to find bottles, including the entire Nickel & Nickel family and their Enroute Pinot Noir - which is an absolute must try if you get the opportunity.
I teetered between 3-4 stars for this place but ultimately settled on 3 because of the parking situation. They share a small (30-ish space) side lot with Starbucks and another place. That's not nearly enough parking considering that Wine Guy's seating capacity is close to 200, if not more. And for anyone familiar with the parking pains at Rookwood, you know it's not easy to find a spot anywhere. I'm sure they lose out on a lot of business because people get fed up with circling the parking lot for a spot.
They're supposed to be opening up a small location at the Banks in downtown. I'll be enthusiastically rooting for it to succeed as the surrounding options are severely lacking.
Wonderful bistro and attached wine shop, with an excellent selection of 7-8 different wine flights(consisting of 4 2-oz pours), as well as a large full glass or bottle selection. You can also buy any bottle in the wine shop's very impressive, though slightly overpriced, selection and the restaurant will open for a $10 corkage fee.
The seafood stew is excellent, with a surprising, exceptional risotto base. Also, the shrimp and scallops were cooked perfectly - something only the finest restaurants seem to do well.
The tri-colored tortellini with chicken is very good, even if a little uninspired. It's apparently a crown favorite, and I did clean my plate; though next time I would opt for something more creative.
The tomato soup is a must. It has a strong red bell pepper flavor that just makes the dish. I'm not sure I could go here again without starting with this spectacular soup.
Quick summary- Wine flights are a great way to side - by - side nice and unusual wines. Food portions are small and pricey, but nicely prepared and beautifully presented. Â Noise - it was like a 5 Guys Burgers and Fries.
We went for our anniversary, and it was really quite nice. Â The service was attentive to our needs, and by that I mean he stayed away when we didn't need him and was there right when we did. The menu had a broad selection of tempting choices and the cheese served as appetizers was a great thing to enjoy with the first flight of wine.
It was really noisy, though, and the two seater tables are way too close to each other, so romantic whisperings  were out of the question. I tried romantic yelling, but cut it short when the guy two feet at my side acted like he thought I might be talking to him.
If you love wine, nice food in smaller portions and a somewhat raucous atmosphere, I'd highly recommend it
I have absolutely nothing bad to say about this place.
I've been here three times- two times was just for wine flights/appetizers, and once for dinner (on NYE).
The wine flights are by far my favorite thing, and what keep me coming back. They do change them out a bit every once in a while (each one has been slightly different, I think, each time I've been in the last year), but they have EIGHT to choose from, four white and four red flights, all with different wines.
So now that you've had your wine, there's the rest of the pretty sizable menu.
I've had cheese plates (just so-so), the hummus (not memorable), the bruschetta (wonderful), a pizza (good), entrees (all WONDERFUL), and dessert (also WONDERFUL).
This is one of the rare times when I'll say that the price point, while kind of high, is totally worth it. Plus they sell their bottles at state minimum prices, so you can always go home with a new favorite!
Word of warning: they get so so super busy on weekends that I only go there on weekdays, unless I can do a reservation.
One thing I really like about them is that last time I was there was around 8pm on a weeknight, and though were were only doing wine flights and appetizers, they let us sit at a table outside that was table service. And every time I've been there, the service has been fantastic- lovely and funny, very attentive.
I'm torn on this place, between the three and four star. (I'm trying to be tough in my reviews :) )
The Wine Guy did *not* impress me on my first trip, but it's grown on me. I've never went to truly make a dinner out of it, and so I cannot comment on any main dishes. I've ordered always from the small plates section and eaten tapas-style. The first time I went, I found the antipasti plate disappointing (in terms of the quality of the items). I've since changed my mind, somewhat.
I will say that their bread plate is phenomenal, and it's all due to the quality of the balsamic vinegar. Also, their cheeses are very good and generously served.
Also, wine flights are almost all $15 and really nicely set up. And, on Thursdays, they feature free tastings! That was a nice little surprise the last time I was in here.
Several other reviewers have commented on the fact that it's also a store, and you can pull any bottle off the shelf and pay an additional $10 corkage fee to drink it in shop--and really, that's a pretty good deal. Corkage fees can be far more exorbitant, and it's cheaper than ordering a bottle at a regular restaurant, for sure.
Generally, I've had good service here, too. The staff is knowledgable and friendly, without being pushy.
Of course, as it's in Rookwood, the parking is atrocious--but that's not The Wine Guy's fault.
So I'm going to give this place a solid three stars. Not my choice for intimate dining, or a crazy night out. But when I'm in the mood to try several wines and enjoy some olives and cheese, this is a solid bet.
I found my second favorite wine bar in the area! Â I absolutely love this place, which is very open and cozy. Â
When the server handed us the wine menu, he was very helpful and descriptive. Â I highly recommend the wine flights, which is a tasting of different (4-5 glasses) wines (you choose your wine preference). I did the cabernet sauvignon (excellent choices on the menu). Â Next time I come back, I want to try the pinot noir. Â
While we were waiting for our meals, Â we were given a servicing of pita breads with sundried tomotoe spread. Â Very delicous!
I got the salmon with au gratin potatoes. Â My friend wanted to order an extra side, so she decided to try the mushroom risotto. Â Also a great pick!
Loved my meal, wines, excellent service and great atmosphere!
They also have a store where you can purchase wine. Â
They do not accept reservations for just couples, only large groups. Â Make sure to get here early.
I've been to the Wine Guy 4 times. The first three were good, but my last trip was after they released their new menu.
I got a pizza, which did not look like the pizza shown in the photo on yelp, it looked sort of like a frozen pizza. The crust was not great, it tasted like it was made with some sort of pre-prepared crust from the refrigerated section of Kroger.
I've had pasta, chicken marsala and a steak in the past, they were all great, but this new pizza was horrible.
First of all, the support staff gets 5 stars. Â They accommodated a large group of us as best they could on short notice, and did a stellar job of taking care of us. Â The little lounge rooms are the only place to have a quiet conversation because the din of the place is loud, and we were told it wasn't a busy night. Â I'd hate to see it get rowdy!
The wine flights were of a good variety, but you can't customize them for a decent rate, so just be warned about that. Not much of a beer selection. Â seriously, I know it's the wine guy, but man cannot live off grapes alone.
The food was good, Â but not stellar. Â I've paid 10 dollars for a burger before, and this was no 10 dollar burger. Â At least include a side besides chips for 11 Â bucks.
Their cheese grits were good, but for 3 bucks, you want something bigger than a post it note on your dish. Â
Tasty, yes, a good value, no. Â lousy for groups, Â good for a date, but as with anyting on this side of rookwood, be ready to park and hike.
I'm not a wine snob; if anything, I'm the opposite. Give me a $4 cheapo wine from the bottom rack at Cork & Bottle and I'm good to go. But I had wanted to give the Wine Guy a try, and it was a pleasant, lovely experience.
The food was tasty, if a little underwhelming, but I feel like that might be my fault for getting the chicken. My fiancé got the veal chop with grits cakes, and my aunt got the spicy shrimp pasta, both of which looked and smelled (and tasted, according to them) incredible. The best part of the meal was the meatball appetizer--a trio of true MEATballs, all moist and tender and juicy, in a simple but flavorful tomato sauce.
I didn't get a wine flight, but I feel like next time I might. It seems like such a good deal and a great, cost-effective way to learn a little more about wine. A distribution rep stopped by our table with a generous free sample, and I enjoyed my second glass (Cannonball Cabernet) so much, I bought a bottle to take home. I feel so grown up: I've now graduated to a $16 bottle!
The Wine Guy Bistro has a cozy, warm decor and a friendly, easygoing atmosphere that doesn't feel stuffy or stuck up like you would think. The wine shop has an incredible selection and good prices (or at least that how it seems to a wine neophyte like yours truly) with some more expensive selections if that's where your palate is. It was a great, relaxing dinner and a good experience for wine lovers of all kinds. I will definitely be back for more.
I am going to slightly echo Elizabeth's comments about this place, with slight variation. I have tried to visit this place a time or two before and the wait is almost always way longer than I had time for, until this past weekend. I was with a large group of about 8 people and we spent some time in the draped off rooms in the front part of the restaurant. That part of the evening was rather fun and a great way to relax with friends. I would like to say that all the hostesses and front door man were extremely nice and accommodating. I kept having to ask for more chairs and they were quick to oblige, with no sign of frustration or typical "stop bothering me attitude" that you would find in most other restaurants, so WGWS has that going for it.
I shared had a bottle of Mondoro Asti Spumante ($13+$10corkage), which is actually a reasonable (restaurant) price for a bottle of this stuff. Â If you've never had a glass of this, you gotta try it. Sweet, light flavor, yummy.
Eventually a table opened up and I was definitely ready to eat. Like Elizabeth wrote, the food was not up to my expectations and the price. The main dining area is loud, and not conducive to conversation. Major bummer. I could barely speak to those right next to me let alone the people directly across the table. Would it kill places like this (Hofbräuhaus come to mind too) to put some carpet down or use some acoustical treatments to curb the excessive noise?
I ordered a Margherita Pizza ($13) and it was good but not great. <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/0hxDkI_qfOigeW6nHHPwiw?select=vICgiTVz95wA8aeaujmOsg">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a> I liked the garlic and the cheeses. The leftovers also reheated well two days later. Â
There was a rather difficult and time consuming train wreck of a situation when the bill came, but every server can have a bad night, and the service up to that point was perfectly acceptable. Either way, we all spent about 2 1/2+ hours there instead of about an hour.
Oh well, I will most likely not be back. I might give the soon to be open Banks location a shot, but I don't expect it to be much different.
I really thought I had reviewed this place before, and I would have given it 3-4 stars initially. Â However, tonight's experience makes it a downgrade. Â Used to have great food, good wine, and a great atmosphere. Â Tonight, I felt the food was really subpar - the risotto was clearly made of frozen and canned ingredients, and the pizza was acceptable. Â The wine remains the main draw, but you will definitely pay for it. Â $15 for a flight (1.5 glasses of wine)? Â $10 corkage fee? Â I guess all of it would be worth it if I could get into the atmosphere of this former warehouse store environment. Â It remains a large, loud, cold environment. Â The tables are huge, almost demanding yelling across the table to be heard. Â The environment is far from the intimate environment I would like to see from a wine bar and high priced appetizers. Â I won't protest this place, but when the wait is over two hours I will certainly push for a different place.
I will say that happy hour, with half price appetizers, is a nice place to grab a glass of wine on a weekday.
Almost forgot to mention the free hummus and pita bread!
After a wonderful night at the Yelp Meet the Chef party Beth and I decided to go for a nightcap before heading home. I'm not a wine guy, but Beth is so we went in both feet first.
We sat at the bar area and was greeted promptly by the bartender. They have a spectacular wine selection, but Beth went with the Chard wine tasting. The Tasting was ample in size, 4 different wines adding up to about 3 total glass's. Beth fell in love with the Mercy Chard, I think she has a new go to wine, LOL. I had a vodka club soda, the bartender knows how to mix a good drinks. Not to strong, but definately a nice bite.
It was a nice slow night in the bar area, but the wait staff was having dinner and drinks so we were lucky enough to strike up a conversation with them. I love asking the wait staff what the like to sneak to the kitchen to eat. We were told to get the burger of the day, Seared AHI, or Bacon wrapped Shrimp. Lucky for us its what the wait staff was eating so we go to look and smell for free :) Im definitely getting the bacon wrapped jumbo shrimp when we go back for dinner. It had a bed of asparagus, friend squash, and 3 JUMBO shrimp wrapped in bacon. Although Matt eating the burger of the day was trying to swear an almost religious experience to his burger.
Parking was nice, seating was ample but im sure it was becuase we were there during off times. They even have seating in the wine shop itself which would be great for private conversations.
I met a friend here for dinner and enjoyed the evening very much. Â I was here one other time for a glass of wine right when they opened.
The three things that stand out about this place that I like is 1) the décor; 2) the ability to order wine flights; and 3) the ability to order "tapas" size portions on most of the entrees which is great for sharing.
We each ordered a wine flight which was $14.99 for a flight of four wines. Â The pours were a nice 2 oz each so, it was like having a couple glasses of wine, so the price was right. Â The nice thing about getting a flight of wine is that you get to taste several. Â My flight included a Pinot Noir, two red blends, and a Zinfandel. Â
We ordered one item to share off of the Starters section of the menu and two items to share off of the Entrée Section.  From the Starters section, we got the steamed mussels ($12.99) in a sweet cream broth.  I was a little disappointed of the amount of broth that was in the bowl, so I would say the mussels were good, but nothing to rock your world.  We got the Tapas size Sea Scallop entrée ($14.99) that included two large seared scallops on a bed of greens with candied walnuts and a sweet and spicy reduction sauce - very good.  The last thing we ordered off of the Entrée Menu to share was the Wine Guy Burger of the night ($9.99).  The burger was very good and a hefty size.  As we were eating our items, the waitress also brought us a complimentary Humus and Flatbread plate.  Not sure if that is the norm, but it was very good.
Bottom Line:  This is a place with good wine and good food where you can go and control how much you want to spend.  You can spend a lot by getting entrees and nice wine, or you can go for a simple glass (or flight) of wine and a simple appetizer.  The décor is awesome; the wait staff seems nice - but not real knowledgeable on the wine.  Negative:  The location and parking!!  I have no interest in going there on a Fri or Sat night.
My boyfriend and I went for dinner on Friday. As he is learning about wine, I thought this would be a great place for him to try a few varieties and enjoy a nice meal. Â We each ordered a wine flight, and our server was not helpful beyond taking the orders and bringing out the wines. Â I expected more discussion on the wines, rather than "here you go." Â Our server did not ask our thoughts on the wines during or after the meal.
The food was good, but nothing spectacular. Â I enjoyed the scallops , which were simple and blackened. Â He ordered the ahi tuna dinner, which he said was good but not great. Â He was also disappointed in the portion size. Â As soon as we got home, he was looking for a something more to eat.
Our bill for two flights of wine, two entrees, and one cup of soup was $88 before tip. Â It didn't seem worth it to me. Â It wasn't bad at all but I don't plan on going back, either.
I'm no "Wine Guy" but in my opinion  wine here is ok. I am sure they have spectacular wine. With over 4,000 bottles they are bound to!
The food in my opinion is above par, and I am not talking golf lingo where above par is a negative, but I disgress back to the point at hand. Each time that I've been there to eat my dinner was worth whatever I paid for it!
I adore this place. My boyfriend and I first went two months ago because he had a gift certificate. We each had the sweet wine flight and were blown away. The sparkling red is incredible. All four were very good. The food was also quite good.
A few weeks later, I snatched up a Groupon and insisted that we go the next day. We were again very pleased with everything.
I can't wait to go a third time. This is definitely becoming a favorite of ours.
I've been here twice, and I want to get excited about it. I really do. But it's just always... a little bit disappointing.
The food is good, but it is really pricey. The wine selection is good and the atmosphere is trendy. The wine flights are pretty affordable, and it's a fun way to try new wines.
Fun place to visit, just be aware that the tab adds up quickly.
My friend had a Groupon for this place & once I landed, we decided to stop here for lunch. My international flight was lackluster, but that's because it was a red wine flight & I'm not a red wine drinker. But, I figured why not? I liked 2 out of four of the wines, which were great servings of wine for the price of the flight.
The food was great! My friend & I split an appetizer--bread with olives, roasted red peppers & sundried tomato cream cheese. Soooo good! I had the meatball grinder which was the best meatball sandwich I've ever had! It was sirloin, short rib & something else, I forgot! But it was so good! My friend had the sesame-crusted tuna salad. She loved it as well.
Will def have my friend take me back the next time I come to visit.
Great little spot. Very subdued, Nice selection of wine.  Great lighting. Definitely a romantic  "date spot".  I stopped in for dinner on a Monday and sat at the bar.  I ended up being waited on by two guys who were pretty cool, stopped by just enough to make sure I was doing okay.  Food wise - had the bruschetta - pretty solid with the exception of the tomatoes; guys, it's August!!  Tomatoes should be PERFECT at this point, as far as I'm concerned.  They weren't terrible, but I was expecting more.  Notwithstanding, the bruschetta was good.  Definitely good for a party of two or four.  I also had the Cajun scallops.  Really, really tasty.  They served them with a small bleu cheese and candied walnut salad - I was a little tentative with the combo, but it all worked out really well. Â
The wine flights were perfect and very cost effective. Huge selection of bottles available for purchase as well. Â Also, there IS a corkage fee (which is totally normal at most places). Â They already scored points with me by carrying "The Prisoner". Definitely worth a return visit. Rest of the menu looks intriguing and I really wish I had the appetite for the bacon wrapped prawns b/c they sounded awesome.
Good atmosphere with helpful, friendly staff. They have happy hour with 1/2 prices. Wine flights are good, and if there is a wine you like you can buy it, pay a $10 corkage fee, and if there is some left over you can take it home for later. Â Food is good.
I wish they were opened later.
Great place. Â I understand from my Sister that it gets very crowded on weekends, and, based on my Monday night experience, I can see why.
It's a totally casual atmosphere - I mean it's located in a busy strip-mall with a Nordstrom Rack and a Home Goods.
There is a large bar/wine store to the right when you walk in. Â One of the cool things about this place is that they are not ripping anyone off with their wine prices. Â You can by any bottle of wine at Ohio state minimum and drink it at your table for a $10 corkage fee.
They offer 10 different flights of wines - most of them are $14.99 for 4 good-sized glasses. Â For $30, you can treat yourself to some really good wines (Silver Oak, for example).
The food was quite decent too. Most of the entrees come as a smaller/tapas size - perfect for noshing/sharing/smaller appetities. We had a salad which was unremarkable, but the tapas-sized cajun scallops and the crab cake were excellent. Â We finished with a molten-chocolate cake with vanilla cream cream. Â This last one made is very hard for me to drive for 2 hours back to Columbus that evening! Â (Ok, maybe it was the wine!)
There are several nooks off the left for private wining. Â Otherwise, lots of tables - good for groups. Â I will definitely go back.
The food and wine were really good. Let me start with that. I was very disappointed that when you buy a bottle of wine (from their own wine shop) you have to pay ten dollars on top of that to drink it with your dinner. The wines are already overpriced as it is.
As far as the food, there is a lot of variety. Things are fresh. Overall, the menu is also a bit overpriced. The atmosphere is very nice. The layout of the place is nice.
I realize some places will be more expensive than others, but I did not feel that the food and the prices were right for each other.
The Wine Guy still gets 5 stars for service. But it looks like they're already starting to cut corners on food, which wasn't brilliant to begin with. They had a tasty flatbread pizza that they've dumbed down by using gummy, tasteless crust that I would guess is pre-made.
I'm also disappointed by some of their wine flights, particularly the Italian flight. The single biggest draw remains the opportunity to buy a bottle that you really like and enjoy it with the relatively small corking fee. I just wouldn't have a meal to accompany it.
So I came here for lunch on a Saturday whilst I was out shopping with a friend, so I didn't have any wine (gulp!). Â I will definitely have to come back for some wine. Â You can apparently buy any bottle from their store side and pay a $10 corkage fee to drink it there. Â They claim that they have the best prices, but I checked out a few of my "standby" wines and they are definitely cheaper at Party Source or any of the other 11 liquor stores in my neighborhood. Â
I had a chicken salad sandwich with fruit salad on the side. Â The chicken salad itself was just ok, but the rosemary ciabatta bread made the sandwich! Â I do want to come back and check out some of their appetizers and the "lollypop lamb chops"! Â They have flights of wine for tasting as well and that is always fun! Â Wine does make me happy. Â
Okay..I will definitely be back...
I went for happy hour. Â It was a mediocre happy hour, you get a $1 off glasses or flights - not a good deal for a flight. Â Most apps were half-off as well. Â Overall, it was a nice place, great atmosphere, good selection & service.
I had the international wine flight and the Bruschetta. Â Bruschetta was okay, nothing special.
Cool concept, need to work on the execution. Â I like the option of ordering a flight and we enjoyed the International Flight which for less than $20 felt like a fair deal. Â
Food:
Food was "meh". Â We were underwhelmed and the menu was a bit all over the place. Â The best thing was my friend's risotto. Â The lamb chops were inconsistent, some were raw, some were cooked. Â The margarita pizza was OK and my crab cake was fine. Â I ordered the lava cake which was good but by no means great. Â
Atmosphere:
Very loud and lively. Â I would not recommend this for a romantic date place since the large tables keep you far away from your fellow diners. Â I felt like I was shouting. Â Â
Go for the wine, snack on a some cheese and bread but go elsewhere for dinner. Â Great idea especially for the neighborhood but still have some kinks to work out.
Came here on a Friday night, probably during their first couple weeks of opening, and I was pretty impressed.
The wine bar area was very cool and hopping. Its big, open and surrounded by cases of wine for sale a retail price, which is an awesome feature. Unfortunately, the bar was so jam-packed we had to go sit in the regular dining area, and I felt like that scene in Wayne's World where they get into the first backstage area and they feel all cool, but then there's a second area where the passes dont work and they end up hanging out with the guy who says "My mom gave me a dollar, and dropped me off at the park and ride!" They also have sweet 4-6 person "private booths" which would be cool for a bottle and a snack with friends or colleagues.
The place is decorated rustic french farmhouse style which makes sense b/c of the whole wine thing but the menu is mostly italian. minor nerd thing of mine.
The food and service were fantastic, note though, a tapas size plate of the entrees is more than enough for one person as a meal.
They also have lunch which I'd imagine is good as well.
I heard about The Wine Guy opening a location here from one of the local wine bloggers, if I recall correctly. I immediately signed up for their newsletter as soon as I saw the location would be near me, at Rookwood Pavilion. They're in the the space that used to house Smith & Hawken. They are in their soft opening stage, with the grand opening being Friday, November 12, 2010.
I just needed something small to eat and a glass of wine. The hostess said I could get that very thing at the bar. Great! I was immediately greeted by one of the staff and offered a menu. On one side was the food menu, the other side listed flights that were available. The bottle and glass prices for each wine in a flight were also listed. It was pointed out that many of the menu items were offered in a tapas size, which was exactly what I was looking for. A lump crab cake and glass of J. Lohr Cabernet Sauvignon were served quickly and I dug into the nicely sized cake. I love crab cakes and often try them whenever I see them on a menu. This one was full of generous chunks of crab meat, accompanied with a zesty plum glaze. It was delicious.
As I enjoyed my dish, a couple of the staff members checked on me, and also offered a couple samples of wines I might enjoy on future visits. While I nibbled on the crab cake and freshly baked bread, I looked around at the large, open space. To the right of the entrance was the selection available for retail purchase. In the center is the large bar, to the left the regular seating. I'm looking forward to visiting this place again to try other menu items that caught my eye.
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